One Thousand Aura Lights
Tuesday, July 14th, 2026
RAINBOW THEATER circa 7:32pm—As the sky slowly darkens, the campers’ energy stays at a high level. They dart around downtown Camp, availing themselves of the various unicycles, juggling equipment and tumbling mats at hand. The original broadway cast recording of “Easy To Be Hard” rings out over the Rainbow Theater’s PA as a group of musical theater performers practice their act for tonight’s Teacher Talent Night.
I snag a couple of kids watching the rehearsal to ask them today’s questions: “What class did you take today, and why?”
“I took ASL because I’ve been learning it outside of Camp,” says Nick, 14. “It helps to know some basic signs for when I go non-verbal. It’s like any other language class; you learn about Deaf culture, and how to not appropriate it. My favorite signs are for ‘beautiful’ and ‘I love you a lot.’”
“I took acro because I’m good at it,” says Clara, 9. “I’m good at it because I’ve practiced like once a week for the past three years. Doing acrobatics makes me feel excited and calm at the same time, like a seabird flying over the ocean.”
Before I can interview the whole group, I get called away for guitar accompaniment for the musical theater rehearsal, followed by the same for songwriting rehearsal. Soon the conch is blown, signaling the end of free-time and the beginning of the evening program. I quickly review the changes with our bassist as the emcee welcomes children into the outdoor seating area. We head backstage to await our introduction where a half dozen costumed stilters idle next to their spotters.
LOOLOO circa 8:26pm—I have a few acts between songwriting and musical theater which I’ve chosen to spend near the facilities where idle quotation-givers can often be found.
“I went to songwriting to make a dis track about Vashaun,” says James, 13, referring to Songwriting Instructor Vashaun Harris. “There’s plenty of things to dis Vashaun about, but I couldn’t get any good lyrics going. I guess I’ll just have to keep coming to songwriting or find out some more things about Vashaun that happen to rhyme.”
“Unicycle was beginner only, so I took diabolo,” says Tristan, 12. “I learned the sun behind the back and how to jump over it. It’s like you’ve got aura light when you’ve got better diabolo tricks than other people. I got at least one thousand aura lights today.”
“I took songwriting because I love music and I love making songs,” says Wyatt, 14. “My dad makes music, like drill or something, and he has a super nice drum kit. My main inspirations are like Bladee and Lil’ Uzi; their producing is something else.”
I hear from across the Tipi Circle the song for the stilts act, which is my cue to go backstage for musical theater. 20 minutes later and I’m back at Loo-Loo.
“I took poetry because I like writing,” says Audra, 10. “Expressing myself makes me happy and calm. My goal this session is to write five pages per day. Usually I only write three. I write from my senses; they guide me.”
“Today I took beginning clubs; it was actually a really cool class,” says Alex, 11. “Its about getting a good rotation passing from one hand to the other and just focusing on that. It’s a cool skill to have. You can do it with almost anything. The other day I was bored waiting in the shower line so I juggled my shampoo, conditioner, and body wash!”
“Stilts was a beginner’s class, so I took songwriting,” says Charlly, 11. “I wanna learn how to write songs. It’s a very genuine way to express myself. Something deep down clicks and—magic!”
As I slip back into the Theater area, some inexplicable performance art is taking place involving a robot, a Scandinavian AI peddler and Andy Warhol.
Stay hydrated,
—J. Payseno, Editor